White Sox-Yankees postponed; DH Thursday
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NEW YORK -- The White Sox-Yankees game scheduled for Wednesday night at Yankee Stadium was postponed due to “clearly hazardous air quality conditions,” Major League Baseball announced.
The clubs have been rescheduled for a single-admission doubleheader on Thursday, with the first pitch set for 4:05 p.m. ET. All Yankee Stadium gates will open to fans with valid tickets at 3 p.m. ET.
Chicago’s Lance Lynn and New York’s Luis Severino have been announced as the starting pitchers for the first game. Chicago’s Mike Clevinger and New York’s Randy Vásquez are set to pitch in the second game, which will start no earlier than 7:05 p.m. ET.
Smoky conditions stemming from Canadian wildfires turned Yankee Stadium’s playing field into an orange haze on Wednesday afternoon.
“We cancelled batting practice and were going to do stuff inside,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “I walked out and you see the orange coming through the doors, and then you walk out and you’re like, ‘Whoa.’”
MLB said that the decision to postpone Wednesday’s game in the Bronx, as well as a contest between the Phillies and Tigers in Philadelphia, came following conversations throughout the day with medical and weather experts and all impacted clubs.
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation issued an air quality alert in effect until midnight. As of 4 p.m. ET, the air quality index (AQI) for Yankee Stadium was 335, which is considered hazardous.
The White Sox and Yankees played their series opener in smoky conditions on Tuesday, with Chicago defeating New York, 3-2.
“The report I heard is that it is supposed to be potentially a little worse tonight, but clearing and better by [Thursday],” Boone said. “Obviously, we’ll get here and see.”
Fans with paid tickets for the game marked Wednesday, June 7 may exchange them for tickets to a similar 2023 regular-season game at Yankee Stadium (subject to availability) as described in the Yankees’ rain check policy, which may be found at www.yankees.com/raincheck.